'Of Mice and Men'

"Of Mice and Men" may not be the most fun of the season, but it is a dramatic experience not to be missed.

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By Bette McFarrenbmcfarren@ljtdmail.com

LA Junta Tribune - La Junta, CO

By Bette McFarrenbmcfarren@ljtdmail.com

Posted Apr. 17, 2013 at 3:00 PM

By Bette McFarrenbmcfarren@ljtdmail.com

Posted Apr. 17, 2013 at 3:00 PM

"Of Mice and Men" may be the best play that this reporter has ever seen at the Picketwire. It is not the most pleasant, but John Steinbeck is a master at revealing the human condition and Ashley Jo Owen has done a beautiful job of directing. A good professional actor once said that everyone on stage should be reacting at all times to what is going on and who is speaking, and in every scene of this play that is observable.

George (Mark Randall) feels that Lennie (Tom Seaba) is his responsibility. He is also his companion and his true friend. The play is an observation about friendship, specifically friendship among men. There is foreshadowing from the start. Lennie says, "Let's go, George. This is a bad place." Have you ever watched a monster show and sympathized with the monster?

One of the characters, probably Whit (Stephen Lange), says, "If a man stumbles on a pebble, falls and hurts himself, it's not the pebble's fault." Probably these are the only sympathetic words directed at Curley's Wife (Baillie Engebrecht) who is clueless of her part in the drama which is unfolding. Engebrecht makes her self-centered persona believable, though not evoking sympathy from anyone. The men tell her repeatedly to "stay away from the bunkhouse."

Mark Randall delivers a wonderful performance as the dreamer, George, whom Lennie (Tom Seaba) asks to repeat the dream of a ranch of their own over and over. It is such a vivid dream that it draws in another character, Candy (Norm Milks), who wants to go with them and has some money he has been saving to help. The killing of Candy's stinky old dog in one of the first dramatic scenes stays with the audience and acts as a harbinger of what is to come, establishing the character of the group of men.

Strangely enough, there is humor. Lennie is played to the hilt by Tom Seaba, who never steps out of character. It is sort of like watching King Kong go to his inevitable doom, but he has some pretty funny lines along the way.

The depression era is well evoked by the music, before the play and during intermission, and the bare set, especially the screen door through which we often see a character listening to what is going on. The general pathos of men desperate enough to take any sort of employment by any kind of boss permeates the play.

This may not be the most fun of the season, but it is a dramatic experience not to be missed.